Page 32 of Enslaved By Magic

Chapter 13

(Amari)

When she was lost in the haze of pleasure that came from finally succeeding in getting what she wanted, it had been perfect. There were too many sensations happening at once for her emotions to get involved. With only a little guiding, Luke had been the perfect lover, giving her exactly what she needed for the night. She didn’t want a kind and considerate man who put her first. She wanted to take what she needed from him, but it wasn’t for the reasons he probably thought.

She was falling for him, and it was getting harder to remember that he was just another in a long line of masters who couldn’t be trusted. She needed to keep the upper hand while pretending to be the dutiful slave, but that had become problematic. His ethics and morals, and, of course, his kindness, were getting to her—winning her over in spite of herself, and having finally talked him into sex, she didn’t want more reasons to like him.

Keep it strictly on a level of animal passion, fill the need for both of them, and don’t let it mean anything—that was what she intended. But when she curled up in his arms afterward, she knew she’d made a big mistake. It had been comical at first, bordering on slapstick as they tried to get comfortable. She’d almost elbowed him in the face turning over, and then he’d rolled on her hair and given it a sharp tug. She couldn’t help laughing at how awkward it all was.

But once they’d finally sorted everything out and she’d settled back against his damp chest, she realized it felt like home. She didn’t enjoy cuddling after sex, she preferred to return to her bottle and wash the scent of lust off her skin—except, apparently, with him. She relaxed in his arms and realized she wanted to stay right there for the rest of the night, and maybe every night after that.

She didn’t understand it and that made her uncomfortable. She shifted, moving with a restless energy that took a while to die down, until she realized she was keeping him awake with her twitchiness and forced herself to be still. She waited until he was snoring softly and then she carefully moved out of his embrace and left the bed. She stood there, looking down at him and the slight smile on his face and could practically feel the ice around her heart melting. Her courage failed her, and she fled to her safe place before she gave in to the urge to creep back into his arms and settle there for the night.

She didn’t need to sleep, immortal creature that she was, but she was accustomed to it, and it passed the time. That night, sleep was slow to come, and when it did finally arrive, it was fractured with alternating dreams of being with him and nightmares of being betrayed by greed. She gave up eventually and spent the rest of the night reading.

In the morning, she avoided him, remaining in her bottle until she heard him leave the house, for work she assumed. She wondered why he bothered to keep going to work at all, knowing his wish would come true that night—after that he’d no longer need his job. It was habit, she thought, rather than doubt she could do what she promised. Fucking her had been his admission that he believed in her powers and everything she’d told him.

And yet, later while they sat in front of the computer and watched the live broadcast of the winning numbers being chosen, the look of awe and shock on his face told another story. So maybe he hadn’t completely believed her at all because his expression said there’d been some lingering doubts, at least on some level. He checked the ticket a dozen times, comparing it to the ones flashing on the screen. Then called up his uncle and asked him to read the winning numbers over the phone. They matched of course.

His uncle seemed to understand immediately what had happened even before Luke breathlessly confirmed it with, “I—I won.”

She couldn’t hear what was said on the other end, but she’d had a feeling at dinner that the older man had known the purpose for the lottery ticket, and now he was just confirming it. Luke listened attentively and she watched as he struggled to form the occasional word.

“Yes. It seemed the best way to do it. Not really sure how to—yes, of course. That’s a good idea. Do you have someone?” he asked. She didn’t understand much of it, but finally he hung up and sank back in his chair with a deep shuddering breath.

“Most people seem happier when they get their wish for lots of money,” she commented. She was teasing, and his reaction wasn’t really that unusual, especially after a first wish. There was always shock when a dream came true. He’d be more prepared when he made his second.

“I’m happy—it’s just a lot to take in,” he said.

“And now that you’re incredibly wealthy, what do you intend to do with your riches?” she asked in a playful tone as she moved closer and tugged his hair.

“Well, my uncle suggested I wait to claim it until I contact a lawyer. He has someone for me and will set up a meeting for tomorrow. I want to avoid as much publicity as I can—considering how I won it, it seems best to limit the attention,” he explained.

She shrugged. “If you like. Of course, you have two more wishes, so if you got into trouble, I’m sure it wouldn’t be too hard to wish yourself out of it.”

He shook his head. “I’ve read that story, Amari. A wish goes wrong, the next wish attempts to fix it and makes it worse, and the last wish is wasted just starting over so you end up with nothing. No thanks, I’m going to do this the right way,” he said. His expression was tinged with suspicion as he mentioned those familiar old tales of wish-givers getting the upper hand, but she didn’t take it personally.

She’d be suspicious too most likely, but if it had been that easy to trick someone into making all three wishes, she’d have been freed a long time ago. There might be those who had that ability, she couldn’t say because she’d never met anyone in her situation. She’d attempted to make wishes go wrong before, but it never went the way she planned. The magic that worked through her granted what was wanted without giving her the option to play with how it was phrased, despite what fiction had people believing.

“Smart, Luke. You’re cleverer than most. Mind you, I’m not trying to get you into trouble, just reminding you that you have options.” She leaned in and brushed her lips across his, then slid into his lap while he was distracted by the kiss. “How about if I distract you from the pressures of being wealthy for a while?”

He hesitated and she could see a look of carnal desire on his face, but finally he shook his head again. “As much as I want to—tomorrow’s going to be a long day. I should get some sleep if I’m going to be at my best to meet with the lawyer,” he said with regret in his voice.

She wiggled in his lap, grinding down on the bulge she could feel growing. “Sure about that?”

“Positive, and if you keep that up, you’re going to get another spanking, but without the fringe benefits this time,” he said in a warning tone.

She sighed dramatically and levered herself off his lap. “Fine, fine, just trying to help.” She let him see the deliberately pouty look twisting her face.

He wasn’t fooled, not that she’d expected him to be, and snorted. “Uh-huh. I think you better go to your bottle, missy. But—if you’d like, you can come with me tomorrow. It’s mostly going to be a lot of boring errands, but I’d like your company. That’s not an order, by the way, if you’d rather stay home—”

“No! I want to come,” she said, interrupting quickly. “I won’t be bored.” She was never bored—in or out of the house. There was still so much to see and learn about. Much had changed in the past thirty years and she would soon, she hoped, be navigating on her own as a free woman. She wanted to know everything before then.

He smiled, looking pleased. “Good, then I’ll see you in the morning. Unless…” He paused, eyeing her thoughtfully. “You could sleep with me, just sleep, if you promise to behave. I meant it about wanting to get a good night’s rest.”

She couldn’t keep the wicked smile off her face, though she tried. She opened her mouth to assure him that she would be very good, and she wasn’t lying, of course, she just had a completely different meaning of the word good in mind, but he stopped her.

“Forget it,” he said. “I wasn’t born yesterday.”

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